Newsstand: Where Notre Dame ranks in The Athletic’s preseason Top 25
Notre Dame landed at No. 7 in The Athletic’s preseason Top 25, which senior college football columnist and editor-in-chief Stewart Mandel released Tuesday morning.
The Irish trailed only Georgia, Ohio State, Texas, Alabama, Oregon and Ole Miss, respectively. If these were the final rankings, Notre Dame would be the No. 9 seed in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff and travel to Oxford, Miss. for its first-round game (as hypothetical conference champions, No. 8 Utah and No. 10 Florida State would receive first-round byes and be seeded No. 3 and No. 4).
“Proven quarterback Riley Leonard (Duke) could thrive with new offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock’s run game,” Mandel wrote. “Rising sophomore Jeremiyah Love is ready to be the lead back, and the Irish should be better at receiver with the addition of Kris Mitchell (FIU). But it won’t be easy replacing offensive tackles Joe Alt and Blake Fisher.
“Defensive tackles Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills, linebacker Jack Kiser, safety Xavier Watts and cornerback Benjamin Morrison return from last year’s defense that ranked fifth nationally in yards per play. Early enrollee linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa wowed in the spring game.”
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Oklahoma nabs OC
Sooners tab Ben Arbuckle as OC
- 2
Sam Pittman
Will return to Arkansas as head coach
- 3New
CBB Top 25
AP Poll shake up after Feast Week
- 4Hot
Harsin wears Bama gear
Former Auburn HC sports LANK shirt
- 5
BCS formula predicts CFP
Predicting the College Football Playoff Top 25
Three Irish opponents appeared in The Athletic’s Top 25: Florida State at No. 10, Louisville at No. 18 and Texas A&M at No. 23.
For Mandel’s full story, click here.
Notre Dame Tweets of the day
“SO BACK!” — Rocco Spindler
The Irish announced an interesting non-conference game for 2025.
Two legends. Perhaps Hall of Famers?
Quote of the day
“We have to be able, when a team says, ‘We’re going to make you one dimensional,’ make them pay. When a team says we’re going to load the box and not let you run the football, we’re going to make you pay in the passing game.”
— Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman on how the Irish offense can reach a championship level in 2024
Headlines of the day
- Where Notre Dame stands for budding WR target Jamier Brown following Irish Invasion camp
- The Gold Standard: Irish Invasion intel; latest on Notre Dame’s 2025 WR board
- 88 days until Notre Dame football: How often will Riley Leonard run for 88 yards?
- Fighting Irish legend Manti Te’o is on the 2025 College Football Hall of Fame ballot
- Notre Dame football to host Boise State in South Bend in 2025
- On300 OT Adam Guthrie eager to add Notre Dame offer after Irish Invasion camp performance
- Five things elite Notre Dame OT commit Will Black told Andy Staple at On3 Elite Series event
- What Marcus Freeman believes Fighting Irish offense must do to reach next level
